Current Projects

The Center’s New York Health Workforce Data System is designed to support ongoing monitoring of the state’s health workforce. With support from a number of key stakeholders in the state, the system uses both primary and secondary data sources to provide critical information on the supply of and demand for health workers in the state. The primary goal of the system is to provide policy makers, planners, and other interested parties with the best available, up-to-date information about the state’s health workforce to inform decision making that supports a healthier New York.

The Data System projects include:

MONITORING NEW YORK’S HEALTH WORKFORCE

Currently, CHWS monitors seven licensed professions, including voluntary surveying of physicians, registered nurses, dentists, dental hygienists, physician assistants and midwives and a mandatory survey of nurse practitioners. CHWS collects information from these professionals at license renewal as well as from secondary data sources, including Medicaid claims data. Annually, CHWS develops and disseminates reports and research briefs summarizing these data. For more information on this project, contact Nafin Harun at nharun@albany.edu.

CHWS produces an annual report on the state’s health workforce which provides detailed information about health care employment by setting, occupation, and region. Two key objectives of the report are: (1) to describe health care employment trends in the state, using data on jobs by health setting as well as data on health professions in the state; and (2) to identify the health professions and occupations in greatest demand currently as well as offering projections for future demand. The report is designed to assist stakeholders to target workforce development resources to address the most pressing needs; to guide health workforce policies and to inform current and prospective students about health care employment opportunities. For more information on this project, contact R. Ashley Krohmal, rkrohmal@albany.edu.

As part of the State University of New York’s (SUNY) effort to assure the right health professionals in the right places, CHWS has developed the Health Workforce Planning Data Guide designed to assist regional stakeholders in identifying the most pressing health workforce needs. The Data Guide includes information about the health status of the population, the current health workforce, and the educational pipeline. The report is updated every two years. For more information on this project, contact Robert Martiniano, rmartiniano@albany.edu.

CHWS conducts an annual survey of the deans and directors of New York’s registered nurse (RN) education programs and produces an annual report of findings. The survey asks about applications, admissions, RN graduations, barriers to expanding capacity, and an assessment of the local job market for newly trained RNs. A key objective of this research is to document trends in RN graduations regionally and statewide and understand how these trends affect the supply of RNs in New York State. For more information on this project, contact Robert Martiniano, rmartiniano@albany.edu.

CHWS, in conjunction with Graduate Medical Education (GME) Programs across the state, conducts an annual survey of all physicians in New York completing a residency or fellowship training program. The survey collects information about residents’ demographic and background characteristics, post-graduation plans, and job market experiences. CHWS produces an annual report of findings based on analyses of survey responses. The goal of this research is to provide stakeholders with information about the outcomes of GME training and demand for new physicians. For more information on this project, contact David Armstrong, dparmstrong@albany.edu.

In an effort to better understand access barriers to care for vulnerable populations, CHWS is analyzing Medicaid claims data. Using these data, CHWS analyzes various indicators of access to care for Medicaid patients, assessing specific physician specialties such as gastroenterology, primary care, pediatrics, etc., and produces research briefs summarizing the findings. For more information on this project, contact Robert Martiniano, rmartiniano@albany.edu.

CHWS, under contract with the New York Department of Health (NYSDOH), develops federally designated shortage area applications for Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) and Medically Underserved Areas and Populations (MUAs/Ps) and provides technical assistance to organizations and other stakeholders on the designation process, current designation rules, and on other questions related to shortage designations. This work is provided free of charge. For more information on HPSAs and MUAs/Ps, click here. If you have questions or need assistance, contact Dr. Robert Martiniano at (518) 402-0250 or at rmartiniano@albany.edu.

CHWS maintains a website on health careers that provides complete and current information on nearly 60 health professions. The website provides general descriptions of health occupations and specific educational and state licensing requirements, listings of and electronic links to educational programs in the state, the number of individuals in specific occupations, and forecasts from the Bureau of Labor Statistics on future job growth. It is designed to assist students, guidance counselors, current health workers, and anyone interested in a career in health care. For more information on this project, contact Robert Martiniano, rmartiniano@Albany.edu.

Established to support the efforts of the National Center for Health Workforce Analysis (NCHWA), HWTAC provides technical assistance to states and organizations that engage in health workforce planning. HWTAC conducts a number of initiatives each year designed to provide expert assistance with health workforce data collection, analysis and dissemination. For more information on this project, contact David Armstrong, dparmstrong@albany.edu.

CHWS was awarded a Cooperative Agreement from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to establish an Oral Health Workforce Research Center. Access to oral health care in the United States is uneven, and despite efforts to improve the oral health of the nation’s population, oral health disparities persist. The OHWRC will conduct much-needed research focused on gaps in the oral health workforce in order to support the development of oral health workforce policies and programs that assure better access for underserved populations. For more information on this project, contact Margaret Langelier, mlangelier@albany.edu.

With support from HRSA’s National Center for Health Workforce Analysis, CHWS has teamed with IHS Global Insight to update HRSA’s models for projecting the future supply and demand for more than two dozen health professions and occupations. To date, HRSA has released a report, The Future of the Nursing Workforce: National and State-level Projections, 2012-2025, based on these updated supply and demand models using a microsimulation approach to forecast workforce adequacy. To view HRSA’s report, click the following link: HRSA 2012-2015 Nursing Projections. For more information on this project, contact Gaetano Forte, gforte@albany.edu.

The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics biennially publishes occupational and industry employment projections for a 10-year period. Projections by sector and by occupation for the period 2016 through 2026 will be released in December 2017. CHWS will analyze these projections and summarize the most significant findings related to health care employment and health care occupations. Health care continues to be the fastest growing employment sector in the country, and employment projections specific to health care will assist stakeholders and policy makers in understanding future health workforce needs. For more information on this project, contact Robert Martiniano, rmartiniano@albany.edu.